Nicola's

31/01/2026

We have a new updated website 🙌😃❤️we still have more to add so watch this space 😃

Women - Advocating for Women's Mental Health & Women's Health

31/01/2026

🎥 Nicola’s Short Film Spotlight 🌸

We watched This Is Endometriosis — a deeply personal and expressive short documentary that shows what living with endometriosis really feels like.

👩‍🎨 Told through the eyes of photographer and filmmaker Georgie Wileman, the film blends present-day narrative, intimate self-recorded moments and memory to reveal how this chronic condition can rob time, energy and quality of life, often behind closed doors. The story is raw, honest and human — and reminds us how important it is to see, believe and support people with invisible illness.

✨ Endometriosis affects around 1 in 10 people born with a uterus but is still widely misunderstood and under-recognised.

If you haven’t seen it yet, take a moment to watch — and share — because representation matters, and awareness can change lives. 💛

https://www.thisisendo.com/watch-this-is-endometriosis?fbclid=IwdGRjcAPqjFBleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEetuIE5L4rVXDIenFOFPG8sbTkxX5vOdG9MU1rgY0CZZ4yJlqZljUVjziXYIA_aem_YW2DfohW7RFa5mf7tM0f4Q

’sCommunity 🙌

WATCH This Is Endometriosis is an intimate, expressive film about how endometriosis has robbed Georgie Wileman of time. Told in the first-person and blending present-day narrative with memories from the past, the film is a uniquely personal account with unprecedented access.Combining deeply private,...

31/01/2026

🌸 Nicola’s Self-Care Saturday 🌸

✨ Did you know?
The word Saturday comes from Saturn, the Roman god linked with rest, reflection, and slowing down.

It was traditionally a day for pausing, restoring energy, and preparing for the week ahead — not rushing or overloading yourself.

No wonder Saturdays often feel different.

So today, give yourself permission to:
🌿 Slow your pace
🛏️ Rest your body
🧠 Unclench your mind
💗 Do something small that nourishes you

Self-care doesn’t have to be productive.
Rest doesn’t need to be earned.

✨ A gentle reminder:
You are not lazy for needing rest.
You are human.

From all of us at Nicola’s 🌷
Take today a little softer 💕

30/01/2026

🌸 Nicola’s | Understanding Mental Health & Finding Support 🌸

Mental health affects how we think, feel, behave, sleep, and cope with everyday life. When stress, anxiety, trauma, low mood or overwhelm build up, it can feel confusing and frightening — but you are not broken, and you are not alone 💗

At Nicola’s, we believe in knowledge + compassion + practical tools.

🧠 Understanding Mental Health & the Nervous System

When we experience stress or trauma, our nervous system can get stuck in survival mode (fight, flight, freeze or shutdown). Learning what’s happening in your body can reduce fear and increase self-kindness.

🎥 Trauma and the Nervous System – A Polyvagal Perspective
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdIQRxwT1I0

🎥 The Black Dog – a powerful way of understanding depression
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiCrniLQGYc

💬 What is CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)?

CBT helps us understand the link between thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and behaviours — and gives us tools to gently interrupt unhelpful patterns.

🎥 What is CBT?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NH0Z52t3Dgs

🎥 CBT for Anxiety
https://youtu.be/ib0Mqc1joO8

🎥 CBT for Depression
https://youtu.be/JiltntIRQGA

🛑 Practical CBT Tools You Can Use Anytime

These tools are simple, grounding, and evidence-based:

✨ STOPP Technique – pause, regulate, and respond rather than react
🎥 https://youtu.be/4x35DyHwfto
📱 STOPP App – free on iPhone & Google Play

✨ Decider Skills – emotional regulation & coping skills
🌐 https://pwa.thedecider.org.uk/

✨ 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique – calm anxiety and bring focus to the present
🎥 https://youtu.be/jHV2J8Gp5c4

✨ De-Stress Now
🎥 https://youtu.be/5ClDa-TbAmo

😴 Struggling With Sleep?

Sleep difficulties are incredibly common when mental health is affected.

📱 SORTED App – includes a dedicated sleep section

✨ 4-7-8 Breathing – helps calm the nervous system & promote sleep
🎥 https://youtu.be/j-1n3KJR1I8

🚨 If You Need Support Right Now

Please reach out — help is always available:

📞 Breathing Space: 0800 838587
📱 SHOUT: Text 85258
📞 Samaritans: 116 123

If you need urgent help, please:
• Phone NHS 24 Mental Health Hub on 111
• Call the police if you are in immediate danger
• Attend A&E to see the onsite Mental Health Team

💗 You don’t have to understand everything at once.
💗 Small steps still count.
💗 Support is a strength — not a failure.

With care and compassion,
Nicola’s 🌸

30/01/2026

🌸 Let’s talk about PMS & PMDD 🎙️

🌸 PMS or PMDD? Knowing the Difference Matters 🌸

Many women experience changes before their period — but PMS and PMDD are not the same. Understanding the difference can help women feel validated and get the right support.

💕 PMS – Premenstrual Syndrome

PMS is common and affects many women.

Typical PMS symptoms:
• Mild–moderate mood changes
• Irritability or low mood
• Bloating, breast tenderness
• Headaches or fatigue
• Symptoms are uncomfortable but manageable

🟢 PMS usually does not stop you from functioning day to day.

🌺 PMDD – Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder

PMDD is much more severe and is a recognised mental health condition.

Typical PMDD symptoms:
• Intense depression or despair
• Severe anxiety or panic
• Anger or rage that feels out of character
• Feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, or disconnected
• Difficulty working, parenting, or maintaining relationships
• Symptoms ease once the period starts

🔴 PMDD can significantly impact daily life and relationships.

🕒 Timing Matters

Both PMS and PMDD:
• Occur after ovulation
• Improve when the period starts

But PMDD symptoms are more intense, more disruptive, and more distressing.

💬 Why Awareness Is Important

Women with PMDD are often:
• Misdiagnosed
• Told it’s “just hormones”
• Left feeling misunderstood or unsupported

✨ PMDD is real. PMS is real. Neither is “all in your head.”

🌸 At Nicola’s, we believe women deserve to be believed, supported, and informed.
If this resonates with you, you are not alone 💗

30/01/2026

🌸 Let’s Talk About Our Change.org Petition: NICOLA’S LAW 🎙️
🌟End Medical Mysoginy in Women’s Health Care ⭐️

We are focussing on improving women’s health care through learning, training, and change

🌸 Please keep signing and sharing 🌸
👉 There is NO cost to sign
💗 We’ve reached 25,000+ signatures — thank you for standing with us

In January 2024, we lost our much-loved family member Nicola Thyne.
Nicola lived for many years with endometriosis and chronic pain. Her planned surgery was cancelled shortly before her death.

We share Nicola’s story to honour her life and to help drive meaningful, lasting improvement in women’s health care.

Across the UK, many women continue to experience delayed diagnosis, fragmented care, and feeling unheard when seeking help for conditions such as endometriosis, PCOS, PMDD, perimenopause, menopause, and women’s mental health. These experiences highlight a wider, system-level issue.

Nicola’s Law supports the aims of the Scottish Government’s Women’s Health Plan and calls for:
• Mandatory, evidence-based women’s health training for GPs and other healthcare professionals
• Improved understanding of complex, chronic women’s health conditions
• More consistent, informed, and compassionate care for women

This petition is about learning, education, and system improvement — not blame.

By signing, you are helping ensure women’s health is recognised as a priority, and that Nicola’s story contributes to positive change for others.

🌸 Read Nicola’s story:
www.nicolas-supporting-women.com

✍️ Sign the petition:
https://shorturl.at/IY4rb

Thank you for your continued support 💗
Nicola’s 🌸

30/01/2026

🌸 Today was something really special 🌸

Our **very first Nicola’s drop-in at West Lothian College took place today — and we just want to say thank you 💗

30 incredible women walked through the door.
30 stories.
30 lived experiences.
30 reminders of why Nicola’s exists.

Today wasn’t about services or fixing anyone.
It was about women.
✨ Being seen
✨ Being heard
✨ Connecting with others
✨ Talking openly about women’s health, mental health, and social connection

There was warmth, honesty, laughter, emotion, and that quiet feeling of “I’m not alone here.”

To every woman who attended — thank you for trusting the space, for showing up, and for being you.
This is your space. This is your community.

And this is just the beginning 🌷

With love,
Nicola’s 🌸

’s 💗

29/01/2026

🌸 Let’s talk about Nicola 🎙️

🌸 Nicola’s is deeply personal. In 2024, our family lost Nicola Thyne, who died by su***de after living for many years with chronic pain associated with endometriosis.

She was bright, beautiful, deeply loved, and her loss continues to shape our determination to raise awareness and improve understanding of women’s health and wellbeing.

In February 2025, with her mums consent, we founded Nicola’s in her name — to honour her memory, to support other women, and to encourage conversations that matter. The name Nicola’s was chosen deliberately — so it feels like visiting a friend. Because Nicola truly was everyone’s friend 🌸❤️

🌸 Today, it is our mission to raise awareness of Endometriosis, Mental Health and Women’s Health Inequalities.

🙌 You Deserve to Feel Safe, Heard, and Supported. YOU MATTER 🙏

***deawareness

29/01/2026

🌸 About Nicola’s Drop Ins 🎙️

EXCITING NEWS - We are now open to Women aged 16 years & over 🙌🌸❤️

☕ We are not just a cup of coffee.

At Nicola’s, the tea and coffee matter — but they’re only the beginning.

Nicola’s is a safe, women-only space where you can come exactly as you are.
No pressure. No labels. No expectations.

We offer:
💗 Connection — a place to sit beside other women who understand
💗 Peer support — shared experiences, not judgement or fixing
💗 Mental wellbeing support — gentle, trauma-informed and compassionate
💗 Women’s health education — honest, accessible information about women’s bodies, minds, hormones and health, shared in a supportive way
💗 Belonging — somewhere you don’t have to explain yourself
💗 Hope — even on days when it feels hard to find

We talk openly about things that are often brushed aside — endometriosis, menopause, PMDD, chronic illness, pain, mental health, grief, caring, and the reality of being a woman navigating health systems.

For some women, Nicola’s is the only place they leave the house that week.
For others, it’s where they start to feel like themselves again.

We don’t rush you.
We don’t tell you what to do.
We don’t ask you to be “positive”.

We listen.
We sit with you.
We share knowledge.
We walk alongside you.

☕ The coffee is warm.
📚 The learning is empowering.
💬 The conversations are real.
💞 The support is genuine.

We are open this Saturday at the Bathgate Partnership Centre 10am till 12pm.

Nicola’s is community. Nicola’s is care. Nicola’s is connection.

If you need us — we’re here.
If you don’t yet — you’re still welcome.